NIGERIA - IPP Begins Supply.

With several foreign companies proposing to have IPPs in Nigeria, AES Nigeria Barge has recently commissioned the first three barges of its 270 MW gas-fired emergency IPP for Lagos, supplying 90 MW to the national grid. Under a 13 1/2-year power purchase contract signed in June 2000, NEPA pays the IPP $0.032/kWh.

The project of AES Nigeria, a unit of the US power generator AES Corp., is a JV with the indigenous firm YF Power. Although YF is having a majority stake in the JV, AES operates the IPP. AES has an option to follow its barge project with a 540 MW IPP, also based on gas, to provide longer term power to Lagos, where 60% of Nigeria's industry is concentrated. (AES took over from Enron in January 2001. But Enron is still working on its IPP project for Lagos, although the terms of its deal have been widely criticised and even the World Bank has questioned the privileges which the US company obtained in its agreement).

Agip in February 2001 signed a memorandum of understanding with NEPA for a gas-fired IPP to be built in Nigeria and to cost about $240m. ExxonMobil is intending to build a 360-400 MW power station on Bonny Island, which would be using gas from an NGLs plant the US company is building together with NNPC. This is based on gas from the major's Oso field.

Other sources of energy in Nigeria include coal, lignite, hydro-power and tar sands. Lignite was studied as a commercial fuel by the German authorities around 1900, with the Nigerian Bitumen Corp. of Germany exploring for oil in 1908. Bituminous coal deposits were found soon thereafter. Nigerian coal reserves are estimated at 2.75 bn tons in 13 states, with 639m tons proven. Development by the parastatal Nigeria Coal Corp. is limited for lack of funds. The first coal exports in 20 years began in mid-1996.